Electronic apparatuses that cannot be continuously coupled to stationary power sources may instead employ localized sources of energy like batteries. The growing popularity of mobile apparatuses for use in communication, productivity, entertainment, etc. is an obvious example of how electronic devices may utilize batteries in order to support apparatus mobility. Batteries may be disposable or rechargeable, with technological development currently being focused on rechargeable solutions in view of resource conservation efforts and user convenience. In the area of rechargeable batteries, the evolution of new battery technologies and compositions has yielded rechargeable batteries that can provide more power, longer life and faster recharge times, which has led to the expanded implementation of rechargeable batteries in various areas.
One technology that has seen wide acceptance is lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. Li-ion batteries may comprise one or more individual Li-ion cells that can typically provide long operational life and short recharge times that may prove to be beneficial in many applications. However, while emerging battery technologies like Li-ion compositions may be able to provide strong performance, these benefits come with some maintenance requirements. For example, Li-ion battery performance may be negatively impacted by conditions where the cells in a battery are unbalanced (e.g., one cell in a battery has a higher charge than another cell), as well as the cells being undercharged or overcharged. Undercharging Li-ion batteries can result in electrical shorts that cause the cells to discharge to a state where it is possible the battery cannot recover (e.g., the cells will not recharge). In more extreme cases, overcharging batteries can result in failures including white-hot flames or explosions that can damage equipment.
Even in view of these care requirements and potential failures, safeguards may be built into commercial apparatuses to provide protection that, even if a failure occurs, may simply lead to the apparatus being replaced at a nominal cost. However, some battery applications are not quite so easy to address. For example, satellites that orbit the Earth supporting positioning systems (e.g., GPS), communications, military operations, etc. may also employ rechargeable batteries (e.g., Li-ion batteries). Solar arrays in a satellite may recharge batteries for powering operations when sunlight is unavailable. Once a satellite goes into service, implementing fixes may be extremely difficult or impossible. The failure of a power system in a satellite may not only be catastrophic from the standpoint of the loss of a multi-million dollar piece of equipment, but may also put into jeopardy the mission for which the satellite is intended, which could result in further economic losses, or even injury or loss of life (e.g., in military satellite applications, in manned orbiting platforms like the International Space Station, etc.). The challenge presented by the example of satellite operation is made even more problematic given the harsh environment in which satellites operate. Without the protection granted by the Earth's atmosphere, the typical failure modes for batteries and related circuitry become more probable.